Compass Points to Normal
by Kelcor
Summary: A quick h/c one shot about what might have happened in Compass between when Jack broke his arm and when they all returned to Phoenix. By request. Rated K to be safe. COMPLETE.


A/N This story is for Gib, she requested a hurt comfort story depicting what might have happened in the Compass episode, between when Jack broke his arm and the team's return to Phoenix. Not sure if I like the title or not but wanted to post and it was the only one that seemed to come to me.

Compass Points to Normal

Mac set the magazine down on the table next to his chair and got to his feet. He resumed his pacing back and forth across the length of the hospital waiting room; nothing seemed able to quell the echo of dialogue in his head, so why keep trying?

"… _gonna have to hold the pipe perfectly normal to the wall, okay?"_

" _Dude, nothing about this is normal – "_

The sound of breaking bone and barely suppressed whimper that reverberated through the trash compactor only seconds after that brief interaction would be forever branded in his memory. There was no doubt about it. This was Mac's fault, plain and simple.

" _Are you okay? Is it broken?"_

 _Another grunt of pain made it through his partner's defenses. "I can't think straight right now…"_

Mac glanced at his watch for what seemed like the hundredth time, longing not only for news on Jack's condition but also for some kind of distraction from the constant replay that seemed determined to haunt him. Sometimes, having such a great memory seemed more a curse than a blessing.

Then again, his best friend was the one who was currently sitting in a hospital exam room, likely in a huge amount of pain as they poked and prodded his injury, all because Mac had used the term 'normal'. A term which someone who had not taken physics – like, I don't know, Jack Dalton, for example? – would have no way of knowing had a scientific definition far different from the everyday meaning most people recognized.

So, maybe reliving the final moments of their mission in Cordoba was the least MacGyver could do under the circumstances.

 _Cordoba, Argentina -_

 _Despite the obvious agony Jack was in, he still helped Mac find a way out of the now incapacitated trash compactor while the militia soldiers were distracted by the explosion Riley had arranged on the other side of the complex. But, with his injured arm, Jack couldn't just pull himself out like he usually would, and Mac certainly wouldn't be able to lift him. So, they sifted through the garbage in search of items that could be used in an exit strategy._

 _They ended up piling the most stable pieces of trash on top of one another to make a ladder of sorts. Still, Jack only had one useable arm for the climb, so Mac braced him with his shoulder until he reached the top and jumped down to the ground. His heart clenched with guilt when he heard Jack's stifled cry as the landing jarred his arm._

 _Shoving his self recrimination down for the time being, Mac climbed up and over the lip of the compactor himself, and jumped down just in time to see Riley and Bozer come running up to join them outside the dumpster. Although Jack was hiding his agony quite well, he held his arm against his stomach protectively, earning the anxious attention of the newest member of their team._

" _Are you okay?" Bozer asked, one hand hovering at Jack's shoulder, uncertain where to touch._

 _Riley looked up from her tablet and eyed Jack with concern, then turned her questioning gaze to MacGyver. "What happened?"_

" _Jack broke his arm – " Mac started to explain, the guilt he was feeling seeping into his words._

" _Let's save the play-by-play for after we get out of here," Jack interrupted, eyes scanning their surroundings with practiced precision. "It won't take long for those guys to figure out that little explosion was just a distraction and come running back here, guns a' blazin'."_

" _Good point," Mac agreed. "You guys get going."_

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa, brother," Jack argued. "What about you?"_

" _Don't worry about me," the blond insisted, not at all surprised that, even injured, Jack was not willing to leave him behind unprotected. When the former Delta Commando held his ground, pinning MacGyver with a stern gaze, Mac explained, "I'll be right behind you. I'm just going to leave another little surprise for our militia friends."_

 _Without another word, Mac hunkered down next to the trash bin and set to work with his Swiss Army knife. "You two go on ahead," Jack told Riley and Bozer as he pulled his gun from its nesting spot at the small of his back. "_ _We_ _will be right behind you."_

 _MacGyver's head shot up at that. "Jack – " he protested._

" _Either we both leave, or neither of us leave. That's the deal, bro. You know that."_

 _Mac rolled his eyes, exasperation radiating off him in waves. He should be protecting Jack right now, not the other way around. But, knowing that arguing would be a waste of time, he returned his focus to the job at hand._

 _A few minutes later, he and Jack made their way up the hill to the predetermined rendezvous point. When they were about half way to the top, some rocks rolled out from beneath Jack's feet and he tumbled to the ground, landing directly on top of his injured arm. The strangled cry triggered Mac's guilt once again, and it threatened to make a forceful comeback. Again, he grit his teeth and squashed the distracting emotions down – now was not the time, and this was definitely not the place._

 _Instead, he grabbed a hold of Jack's good arm and pulled it across his shoulders, helping him the rest of the way up the hill – while doing his best to ignore the agonized pants Jack was unable to bite back._

 _It was another 30-minutes before they made it to exfil and Mac wanted nothing more than to apologize to Jack for his earlier error in judgement but pushed away his selfish desire for absolution because he needed to focus on tending to Jack's needs more than his own – namely resetting his arm. It would still be a few hours before they made it to a hospital where his friend could receive medical attention and, even in that short amount of time, not resetting the bone could cause complications._

 _As physically fit as Riley was, she didn't have the muscle mass required to perform this unenviable task as quickly and painlessly as possible. And Bozer, well, he couldn't even stand the sound of people cracking their knuckles, so he instantly made himself busy with preparing a makeshift sling. Which left MacGyver to be the source of even more pain for his friend. Jack accepted the pain killers that Riley offered afterwards, though Mac suspected it was more for his benefit than for Jack's – the guy was forever trying to make MacGyver feel better, whether it be physically or emotionally._

 _Shaking his head with fondness, Mac pressed a splint against the injured arm and tied it in place, then found some extra pillows stowed away in a back compartment and tucked them into Jack's side to prevent him from jarring his arm any further. Blissfully unaware of the three sets of eyes watching him, Jack fell asleep a short time later._

 _Always looking at the ex-CIA agent and former Delta Commando as somewhat of a superhero, MacGyver was more than a little unsettled any time the man got hurt on a mission because it reminded him that his partner was not indestructible but, in fact, as flesh and blood as the rest of them. Which meant that he could be taken away just like Mac's mother had been all those years ago._

 _Eventually, Bozer also drifted off to sleep in his seat across the aisle, while Mac and Riley continued to observe Jack from their window seats._

 _The seats were built to provide plenty of elbow room between passengers, so Mac sat in the seat to Jack's right with his back against the wall of the plane and his knees drawn up to his chest. He kept one booted foot just shy of touching Jack's hip, wanting to know instantly if Jack stirred, in case he needed something. A small part of him knew he was being the mother-hen he always chastised Jack for being anytime their roles of 'injured' and 'protector' were reversed… but he couldn't bring himself to care._

 _Directly across from them, Riley had two seats to herself, which allowed her to stretch her legs out in front of her in a half-reclining position. With his back pressed into the corner between window and seat, Mac turned his head slightly to study her._

 _The computer hacker often tried to hide her affection for Jack behind snarky comments and witty insults but Mac had learned to read her quite well since they first met and he was able to see her anxiety at the idea of Jack being in pain – likely having thought him indestructible the same way Mac had._

 _Sensing the attention, Riley moved her gaze from Jack to MacGyver and allowed him to bear witness to a tiny glimmer of her fear and worry before closing her eyes to his scrutiny and leaning her head back against the window to try to get some sleep._

 _It took a while but Mac's own exhaustion eventually pushed him into a fitful slumber filled with nightmares of Jack getting hurt or worse; each time the injury was because of a mistake MacGyver made. After one particularly horrific scenario of Jack dying, Mac woke with a jolt. As he tried to get his bearings, wondering why his pillow was rising and falling, a voice above him said, "'bout time you woke up, sleepy head. We're gonna be landing at LAX in about 20 minutes."_

 _Startled, Mac found that he was snuggled into Jack's side, his cheek resting on the broad chest. He immediately sat up, flushing with even more embarrassment when he discovered Jack's arm had been draped across his shoulders while he slept. He anxiously glanced across at the now empty seats Riley and Bozer had previously been sleeping in._

" _Relax, they moved a few rows back long before you started our little cuddle puddle," Jack informed him, chuckling softly as the kid's gaze darted to look behind them to see the truth of his words. However, his initial amusement gave way to worry as he gazed at his young friend. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked softly._

 _Seeing the wet spot on Jack's shirt, MacGyver rubbed frantically at his chin with his shirtsleeve, fearful that he would be adding drooling to his steadily growing list of reasons to be mortified. "You're the one with a broken arm, Jack!" he scoffed._

" _And you're the one who was crying in your sleep, brother," Jack returned, instinctively reaching up with his good hand to graze Mac's cheek with his thumb._

 _Flinching away before contact was made, MacGyver's hands moved to his face and found the dampness beneath his eyes. Quickly wiping all evidence away, as if that could erase the fact that it had ever happened, Mac cleared his throat and turned the focus back to Jack. "How's your arm?"_

" _I'll live," Jack said, then added more quietly, "You do know none of this was your fault, right?"_

" _Of course," MacGyver said, shifting his attention to the window next to him and studying the wisps of clouds as if he were set to write an exam on their chemical makeup based on sight alone._

" _Mac – "_

 _Whatever Jack was about to say was cut off by their pilot announcing their descent into LAX. Thankful beyond words for the interruption, Mac quickly turned to fasten Jack's seatbelt for him, then fastened his own, being sure to avoid any and all eye contact throughout the entire process._

Yanked back to the present day by an alert on his phone, MacGyver pulled the device from his pocket and read the urgent text from Matty: "Debrief in my office, ASAP!"

With a sigh, he felt his heart sink. An improvisation in the field had led to a member of the team getting hurt. Flashing back to Matty's warning months earlier, he could already practically hear the rule book being slapped down in front of him.

Resuming his carefully measured steps from one side of the waiting room to the other, MacGyver's mind raced at the possible consequences of being forced to follow a plan set in place long before a mission even started, not being allowed to make-do with what seemingly innocuous ingredients surrounding him at any given time.

Their director might as well just tie Mac's hands behind his back! Jack had tactical skills that could be surpassed by none; Riley could hack any computer or Wi-Fi device like nobody's business; Bozer had the uncanny talent to construct a piece of clay into the visage of anyone he chose, real or imaginary.

MacGyver's ability to think outside the box was what he brought to the table. Without that, what good was he going to be to the team?

Upon their arrival at LAX, Mac had told Riley and Bozer to each go home and get some much-needed rest, while he accompanied Jack to the Foundation's infirmary. Now, he found himself regretting that decision because, as much as he'd wanted to be alone, he would do anything for a prattling distraction from Bozer or a tech-speak induced explanation of one hacking experience or another from Riley – anything to get him out of his own, as Jack would put it, _ginormous brain_.

"Uh, Agent MacGyver?"

Mac spun around to see a hesitant x-ray technician staring up at him. Reaching out, he shook the hand of the clearly new Phoenix employee. "Just 'MacGyver' is fine," he said with a forced calm. No need to scare the new additions to the fold by showing the anxiety currently coursing through his system. "How is he?"

"He has an axial fracture to his left radius," the technician said, pulling out an x-ray to illustrate his point. A quick glance at the nametag revealed his name to be Howard.

Oversight always insisted that anyone employed in the infirmary had at least rudimentary medical skills so that each person could step in to assist in a medical emergency, even x-ray technicians. But Mac got the distinct feeling that this guy likely failed his pre-med class on bedside manner – which was probably why he'd opted for his current career path as opposed to one which would necessitate a need for people skills on a daily basis.

MacGyver studied the snapshot of the inside of his best friend's arm, recalling his own culpability in the injury far too clearly. His attention to detail couldn't help but notice the incorrect label at the bottom of the x-ray film, depicting the right radius instead of the left. He also couldn't be bothered to point the error out. Mac had much more important things on his mind.

THE END.

A/N2 I just wanted to make it clear that _I_ know Mac takes more to the table than just his creative way of thinking outside the box, I just wanted to show a bit of a vulnerable Mac. I feel like he would feel a little unsure of himself every once in awhile, just like we all do. :-)


End file.
